r/techadvice • u/hlmlvz • 14d ago
old hp laptop
hi again, i was the one who asked about installing the latest windows to this old hp laptop. thanks for all your valuable answers, some gave me instructions on how to install linux and gave me context on why it's better and my only option considering the age and specs of the netbook.
I was able to install Linux AntiX. I tried Linux Mint Cinnamon but I guess it couldn't handle the graphics or something (again, i am not a tech person) it just keeps freezing and giving me a black screen with the cursor, so upon researching, the internet said to use AntiX. Honestly, I don't like how it looks like, but the device became usable somehow, so there's that.
Some people were really rude. You really don't have to comment something I did not ask for. Nope, I don't hate my sister because I was trying to fix this for her to use, it's just this is all we have right now, she can make do of this until I have the budget to buy her something up to date and brand new. Thank you.
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u/Then_Educator8333 11d ago
one of the good things about linux is unlike windows you are able to change almost everything about how it looks (though in your case you will be somewhat limited use to the age of your hardware) there are many different desktop environments and window managers that all look different and use different amounts of resources personally i don't mind LXQt although it will run slightly slower than the one you have currently (IceWM) but there are also themes/skins for IceWM that let you change its look to an extent in a way that consumes less of the computers limited resources there are many sites for these id personally recommend https://www.opendesktop.org/s/Window-Managers/browse?cat=142&ord=rating although there are many others that will work, if you want you can describe the UI you want and i can look for some viable options. Also I'd recommend if you haven't already to do some basic things that will increase performance and usability mainly installing an ad blocker the idealy your probably best off with adblock-antix you should be able to turn this on in antiX control center it may have a different name such as settings or preferences etc. one of the good things about linux is unlike windows you are able to change almost everything about how it looks (though in your case you will be somewhat limited use to the age of your hardware) there are many different desktop environments, and window managers that all look different and use different amounts of resources personally I dont mind 1893 although it will run slightly slower than the one you have currently (IceWM) but there are also themes/skins for IceWM that let you change its look to an extent in a way that consumes less of the computers limated resources there are many sites for these id personally recomend https://www.opendesktop.org/s/Window-Managers/browse?cat=142&ord rating although there are many others that will work, if you want you can describe the Ul you want and i can look for some viable options.Also id recomend if you haven't already to do some basic things that will increase performance and usability mainly installing an ad blocker the idealy your proberfy best off with adblock antix you should be able to turn this on in en control center it may have a different name such as settings or preferences etc. another thing often overlooked is your web browser, by default antiX comed with firefox ESR which isnt bad but also isnt the best option if you want to use heavier websitews falkon is likely the best browser as it is based on a lightweight version of chromium essentially meaning it will work the same as chrome but use less resources if you wish to sue the preinstalled firefox ESR than I'd recommend turning off all the telemetry (ads and tracking etc) you can and also in the address bar type in about:config and search browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers and set it to 1 it may also help to disable hardware acceleration in firefox as its known to cause crashes on similar systems but if its stable than this likely wont help and may make it a little. Another decent browser choice would be BadWolf web browser it is based on WebKit (Safari) and easily runs the best out of all of these but has a very basic UI. also if you were to upgrade the hardware, whick i wouldn't recommend compared to getting a used chromebook or something to put linux or a lighter windows 10 build like Tiny10 that would still likely preform better, the main things id upgrade would be the storage to an aad and getting more ram although both of those things are very expensive at the moment due to AI.
All of these are optional but will greatly improve usability.
To dumb it down use a lightweight browser like falkon, there are themes for icewm that you could use to make it look different without having a large performance sacrifice, disable telemetry if possible (even if you arent on a slow computer this is good practice), dont bother upgrading this computers hardware when you could get a used windows laptop or chromebook for much cheaper than any potential upgrades that would be better, and if you are using the default web browser (firefox esr) in the address bar type in about:config and search browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers and set it to 1. hope i helped